Where and when did the martial arts film emerge? What are the cultural resources this hybrid genre draws from? What kinds of spectatorship has it fostered over the course of eighty years and across national borders? This course addresses these and other related questions through a historical survey of the genre’s origins and transformations in the broad landscape of transnational Chinese-language cinema. Screenings include works by key figures such as King Hu, Chang Cheh, Bruce Lee, and Tsui Hark as well as neglected experiments and films associated with their female stars.